Nimble Swinerton stayed profitable as revenue fell

Swinerton Builders tackled the recession by focusing on growing its business and staying nimble.

The general contractor, which has been in business in San Francisco for 123 years, maintained profitability the last few years despite watching its companywide revenue plummet to

$1 billion in 2010 from $1.8 billion in 2008. Its employee base dropped from about 1,350 to 1,000.

Still, the rough period has proven to be valuable since it gave the company a chance to boost its business working with ongoing clients.

“We really changed our focus to smaller projects that were quick turnaround for time, returns and that don’t tie up a lot of people,” said Jeffrey Hoopes, president of Swinerton. “The worst thing in a recession is to take on large projects at a low fee and not be able to move on now that the economy is improving.”

And Swinerton is more than ready to welcome the recovery. Hoopes expects the company to rebuild its lost revenue $2 billion in five years.

The company has offices throughout the Western United States including Hawaii, markets where Hoopes said the economy has started to improve.

“The port cities and the coastal areas are beginning to do really well,” Hoopes said. “We’re seeing opportunities in Seattle, San Francisco, San Diego, and Los Angeles is starting to pick up. It’s a very site-specific recovery.”

Swinerton’s core business is in healthcare, corporate clients, multifamily residential and renewable energy including solar panel installations, the last of which is a fast-growing division. The firm has about $800 million worth of contracts in the renewable energy industry right now.

Another area for growth is construction management consulting.

Swinerton’s projects include work on the next phase of Trinity Plaza at 10th and Market streets in San Francisco, which will involve about 2,000 units.

The builder also completed buildings such as 500 Terry Francois Blvd., a 300,000-square-foot, six-story, post-tension concrete office building in San Francisco’s Mission Bay; the Bay Meadows mixed-use residential project on a former horse-racing track in San Mateo; Gap Inc.’s world headquarters, a 15-story, 595,000-square-foot office building in San Francisco; and the six-story San Francisco Museum of Modern Art annex.

“When things go bad, you want to go out and grab every job you can,” Hoopes said. “Our strategy is to focus on our strengths and not do too many crazy things.”

With the increased work volume, the firm started hiring staff at the beginning of the year and expects to add about 150 employees within the next year.

Swinerton was family-owned for most of its existence from the time it was founded 1888 to the mid-1980s when it became employee-owned.

“The fact that we are employee-owned builds a neat culture — kind of a family culture,” Hoopes said. “When the company does well, everyone benefits. Everyone works hard for the good of the company.”

Three questions for the president

What’s your biggest business concern?: The double-dip possibility. Making sure the credit markets stay open and there’s capital for real estate. The federal government has done what it could, now it’s up to the private sector to step up investment in the economy and they need capital to do that.

How do you expect your business will change in the next year or two?: We’re moving into a growth mode versus a hold and survive mode.

Do you expect to be hiring this year?: Yes. We will be doing a great amount of hiring. We plan to hire 150 staff people in the next year alone, companywide.